Surprise: The most popular online dating site in the emerging world is… Facebook

We recently explained that Facebook is flourishing worldwide despite a perception that it declining in the West, and a new survey of Internet users shows the social network is winning the online dating battle in emerging markets.

Market intelligence firm Jana — a well respected source for taking the emerging world’s pulse on tech topics — surveyed 1,500 Internet users aged between 18 and 30, asking them which sites they turn to when they want to meet members of the opposite sex.

While Tinder and other red-hot Western apps haven’t got into Africa, Asia or Latin America, there are many dedicated love sites — such as Badoo or Match.com — but Facebook trumped them in many countries, including those below:

It remains to be seen if (and how) Facebook’s global dominance will be tested in emerging markets as smartphone adoption increases and larger numbers of people go online for the first time, with apps and mobile browsers their primary Internet experience.

As messaging apps become increasingly prevalent — particularly in Asia, where they rival Facebook and Twitter — they are becoming popular platforms for dating too. Friend suggestions, location-based chat and other features encourage connections with new people and the possibility to meet your match online.